


party time

by paper_rabbit



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: Angst?, Drinking, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Panic Attacks, Pinkberry, Post-Squip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2017-07-05
Packaged: 2018-11-21 16:00:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11360772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paper_rabbit/pseuds/paper_rabbit
Summary: the whole squad has a party and all sorts of shenanigans ensue





	1. pre-game nerves

Rich nervously pulled the sleeves of his flannel further down his arm-- a habit he had picked up ever since he was released from the hospital with pink burn scars. Wherever he went, he felt like he could hear people whispering about them.

 

“How do you think that guy got those crazy scars?” “Maybe he was fighting a shark or something.”

 

“Who is that boy over there with the burns? Isn’t he Goranski’s kid?” “Oh, haven’t you heard? He’s the one who set the Dillinger’s house on fire.”

 

“Dude, Rich has been acting different ever since he came back with all those scars.” “Shh, don’t let him hear you or he’ll try to light you on fire!”

 

Even in Jake’s (new) house, with no one there but his friends, he was on edge thinking about the party that would begin within the next hour. The last party Rich had gone to was the Halloween party; that dreaded night still gave him nightmares. He was so completely out of control, and yet he felt more free; he wasn’t under anyone else’s control. Even still, he never wanted to feel like that again-- not after getting control back himself. Rich didn’t think he’d be able to get drunk for a while, and especially not tonight. Honestly he just wanted to get through the night and go home, which would have been much easier if his friends weren’t breathing down his back.

 

“Rich!” He was suddenly having his shoulder bumped by Chloe’s, who had a cup in each hand. “God, stop being such an emo in the corner and help us set up! Now, which punch tastes better to you?” She held out both the cups to him.

 

“Uh Chloe, I wasn’t planning on--”

 

“Oh could you relax?” she said good-naturedly, giving an amused eye-roll. “There isn’t any alcohol in these… yet.”

 

“Okay, fine,” he resigned, taking a sip from each cup. “This pink one is better.”

 

Chloe took the other cup of punch with the tips of her fingers. “Good. I thought so too.” The worse punch was tossed into the trash. “Now that that’s out of the way, please tell me I’m not going to be finding you here all night. Not after we all finally managed to haul your ass to any sort of party.”

 

Rich sighed. “I know, I know. It’s just been, harder I guess, to talk to other people than you guys.”

 

“Yeah well, not everyone can be as charming as me,” she said, flipping her hair, “but that’s no excuse to not at least try to mingle.” Now that one of her hands was free she was able to actually place her hand on Rich’s shoulder, giving a look of genuine caring. “I’m not expecting you to be the same guy as before. I just, want to see you having some fun like you used to, you know?”

 

“Yeah, I do. Thanks, Chlo.”

 

Chloe was already walking away. “Whatever.”

 

Despite her cooler and more carefree persona, Chloe actually cared a lot about her friends and would stay fiercely loyal to her squads. Even when Rich had downgraded in his coolness, she kept the silent code they shared through mutual popularity to have each other’s backs. Her popular status was so secure that she never worried about doing things that could ruin her reputation, so she was always ready to support her friends in any way she can. She might have not always seen the full picture, but she was there, and that was more than Rich expected from a girl like her.

 

And so his nerves for the party were calmed-- for now, at least. There was still a sinking feeling of dread in the bottom of his stomach that he was trying to ignore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok I don't really know where this is going but I kinda like it so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> this is just me testing out writing all the bmc characters so if something seems off let me know, I love feedback


	2. distracted

“I said the Sprite, Brooke. I only asked like three times.”

 

“Oh, right. Sorry.” Brooke tried to laugh off her mistake as she handed Chloe the soda. They were both making punch in Jake’s kitchen for the upcoming party, but Brooke found herself getting continuously distracted from across the table. Chloe had taken her jacket off in the heat of the house and was wearing a more low-cut top, showing the prominent structure of her collarbones going to her broader shoulders. Brooke was in love with the shape, tracing it in her head. But it wasn’t just her body she was fascinated in; it was every little one of her girlfriend’s mannerisms. The way she bit her lip the tiniest bit while reading a recipe. The way her fingers hovered over every item on the table before plucking what she needed. The way she stirred the punch in the bowl quickly and yet didn’t spill a drop anywhere… The way…

 

“...Brooke. Brooke!”

 

She snapped back into reality at the sound of Christine yelling her name. Wait, how long had Christine been standing there?

 

Probably as long as Brooke had been standing motionless holding a sugar shaker in midair, pouring the contents into her punch bowl. She immediately put it rightside up and back on the table. “Ohmygod, I’m so sorry! Jesus christ, I am so stupid.”

 

Chloe noticed the commotion and instantly cracked up, grabbing a spoon and holding a giant, soggy scoop of sugar in front of Brooke’s face. “Brookie, when you told me to make sure you don’t get high tonight, I included a sugar high.” She snorted at her own joke, whereas the girl in front of her could only groan and try to hide her bright red face with her large sweater sleeves.

 

Christine rubbed Brooke’s shoulder comfortingly. “It’s okay; you were making a small bowl, so we can just add more soda. Or water, if you think that it would get too sugary. We could use ice cubes so it’ll stay cold longer. Oh! I heard somewhere that you can add sherbet to punch and that will--”

 

Jake interjected from across the room. “We got extra soda in the cooler outside.”

 

“Oh. Okay then,” Christine wavered, looking a bit disappointed that her sherbet idea wouldn’t come to fruition. “It’s no big deal. I was just, ya know, throwing stuff out there. Next time I guess, right?”

 

Chloe made her way around the table. “Totally, Christine. But for now, Brooke and I will go get the soda, won’t we Brookie?”

 

“What?” Brooke started before being grabbed at the wrist by Chloe and dragged to the back porch, out of sight from everyone else inside.

 

Chloe sighed deeply and ran her fingers through her hair, her breath slightly visible in the cold air. “About time we could be alone for a bit. I don’t think I could have lasted one more minute just looking at you being all cute making dumb punch.”

 

Brooke’s eyes widened slightly. “Really? You thought I was cute making a drink?”

 

Chloe smirked, leaning in closer. “Well, ruining a drink.” It was when she started twirling her finger around a lock of Brooke’s silky hair that her facial expression softened. “But, yeah. The way you mouthed the instructions you were reading, the way you instantly grabbed whatever you were gonna use from the table, the way you splashed some punch onto your shirt because you were mixing too fast…” Their foreheads were touching now, and they were both exchanging breathy giggles. Brooke grabbed the ends of her sweater and put her arms around Chloe’s waist, enveloping her in coziness. “We really should get back inside.”

 

“Hmm,” was all Chloe had to say on the matter, juggling her weight from one foot to another. The other girl followed suit, so that they were in a sort of slow, cuddly dance. 

 

The party hadn’t even started yet, and Brooke already knew that this would be the highlight of her night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well if this isn't the sappiest thing I've ever written
> 
> I had never really felt anything about Brooke or Chloe as characters or the ship, but now that I'm done writing this I finally understand. I now feel EVERYTHING
> 
> tell me how I did and stuff (sorry these chapters are kinda short I'm workin on it)


	3. panic! at the punchbowl

By the time it was fully dark outside, the party was well underway. Dozens of teenagers littered the entire house, leaving behind a gigantic pile of coats before entering. Although Jake’s parties hadn’t had as long an invitation list since the Halloween incident, the people who did come were ready to make up for the extra space by going even harder than ever. The kitchen had become a laboratory for mixing different varieties of alcoholic drinks, the hallway turned into a makeshift beer pong bowling alley, and the main rooms had more screaming, dancing, and flashing colors than any actual club. Every table that wasn’t knocked over had a speaker at full volume, a box of condoms, and a messy pile of glowsticks. In other words, it was going great.

 

Well, not for Rich it was. He had tried staying in his corner for as long as he could, but Jenna Roland had started throwing daggers at him from across the room so he had to get closer to the dancing crowd for a bit. Luckily, she disappeared pretty quickly, so he was able to scurry over to the snack table off to the side. 

 

When had it gotten so wildly hot? It was probably just all the body heat, Rich guessed, Pouring himself a large cup of punch. It was so cold that it stung the back of his throat, but it was worth it because it gave him something to do so he wouldn’t just be standing there awkwardly. He had absolutely no idea what else to do.

 

See, Rich had technically never gone to these kinds of parties-- at least, not alone. By the time had started being invited to them, he had already grown well accustomed to being spoonfed by his Squip to avoid ever doing anything uncool. Every line, every body movement, every hookup with random hot girls was the idea of the computer. Even when Rich had learned how to act at parties and was able to make some of his own decisions and have fun, the Squip was still there, acting as a bumper for when a choice was especially undesirable. So it became second nature to ask it permission for everything; it was as thoughtless as the way a person would think of what they want to say before saying it.

 

Stop it, Rich thought to himself as he gulped down more punch. He shouldn’t be thinking so much about that, and just focus on the party instead. It did look sort of fun; were the lights kind of brighter than they were a few minutes ago? Whatever, it’s probably nothing.

 

He suddenly noticed that a girl had walked next to and was smiling at him. Her crop top showed off her creamy skin, and her black leggings showed off her curved hips. She must have taken some of the glowsticks strewn about, because Rich saw different neon colors pulsing around her wrists.

 

“Some party, huh?” the girl nearly had to shout over all of the noise. “You’re Rich, right?”

 

“Uhh, yeah.” He knew that he should be facing her, but he couldn’t bear to meet her eyes. The Squip would always remind him that eye contact was extremely important when attracting and seducing females, so he would look directly at all of the girls at parties-- and yet, he never saw any of them. So he just kept giving her small glances, wishing they could stop turning up the volume of the music.

 

She had one arm on the table and was leaning closer to him, giggling both drunkenly and flirtatiously. “Y’know, you’re like, suuuper different from what everyone at school seys ‘bout you, but you’re honestly suuper cute.”

 

He barely listened to what she was saying; he’s heard it all before. Only now he had no idea how to woo her. Was that really what he wanted now anyway? Why wouldn’t he? She seemed sweet, and she was hot. She was clearly excited at the idea of getting caught in drunk passion. Wasn’t he?

 

Rich was on his third cup of punch by now, and as he tipped it practically upside down the girl smirked with an impressed gleam in her eye. “Wow, you really can hold down your drinks, can’t you?”

 

“I mean, it’s just punch.”

 

That just made the girl giggle harder. “Yeah, and like a shit ton of alcohol. If there are half-empty bottles left on the table someone will just pour it in.”

 

Suddenly it felt as though everything was drained out of Rich’s body. Of course. How could he be so terribly stupid? He could now tell that the music wasn’t any louder, only it was also screaming at him. The lights weren’t any brighter, only they were also blinding him. He blinked rapidly, realizing that he barely could see anything at all. Everything was confusingly hazy and painfully sharp at the same time. Also spinning. 

 

A foggy voice came from one side. “Hey, are you okay?”

 

Who doesn’t realize they’re getting drunk. 

 

“W-wha, oh uh?, yeah I juss.?.y-yeah..” He barely breathed out the words; it was hard getting them out through his throat. The thought it took to just say that left his cheekbones on fire, and his mouth buzzing.

 

The girl might have been saying something to him in a worried manner, but he didn’t really notice. He couldn’t notice, he couldn’t look at her, he didn’t want to  _ see _ her.

 

His forearms were twitching. His hands might have been shaking, but then again maybe not. He couldn’t feel them anyway.

 

Why was it so suffocatingly hot.

 

He was such a moron for thinking he could come to this, that he could be here.

 

All his body wanted to do was just collapse, but he was seized up on the spot. He couldn’t stop holding the empty punch cup. He wanted to drop it. He wanted to crush it. He held it perfectly still.

 

There was steam blowing into his eyes. There was lava pouring down his back. There was fire in his chest, there was fire  _ everywhere. _

 

Then there was a blur, and he was grabbed by the arm and dragged by that blur, across the room and up the stairs. It was so fast and he was so unfocused that he didn’t even process the steps he took, or the people he passed by; he just became part of the blur. It was only when he was brought into an empty bedroom upstairs, the door being shut behind him, that he truly felt his feet and how they pushed against the floor.

 

The unknown person was now standing several feet away from him, a hand reaching out and resting on his shoulder. At first, it was unsettling, but it soon felt like it was grounding him. They were holding up four fingers? Rich tried mirroring the number himself, finding it way harder than he thought. His arm was shaking, and his hand felt wrong flexing his fingers and pushing in the thumb; it kept wanting to just curl in and shake violently. Soon enough though, he made the symbol, and the person went on to hold up two. The action kept him focused while his breathing naturally slowed down, and he began muttering the numbers along with making it. “One. Five. One. Four.”

 

Rich was finally a bit more calm, and his eyesight was becoming more normal. He was handed a water bottle and he chugged it down, feeling it cool his insides. Once he was done with over half the bottle he looked around the room, and was finally able to see who the person helping him was.

 

 

 

 

 

“...Jake?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did you like the title? aren't I just so funny and relevant
> 
> this chapter took forever to write, but I feel like it was worth it. as someone who doesn't suffer from panic disorder but has had panic attacks before, I can only speak from my experience, and I gotta say that putting all these feelings into cognitive thoughts and then reading them is strange. its like, I'm realizing what my body is really doing and what I'm really thinking as I go though it, and its uncomfortable but also therapeutic? ok rant over
> 
> please please PLEASE comment your thoughts and feelings because I live for feedback! (*cough*attention*cough*) you guys just really make my day! or night because its 1 am lol

**Author's Note:**

> ok I don't really know where this is going but I kinda like it so ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> this is just me testing out writing all the bmc characters so if something seems off let me know, I love feedback


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